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Saturday, May 29, 2010

State won't exempt public safety agencies in next round of budget cuts

State leaders on Friday ordered Texas government agencies to identify another round of possible budget cuts, and this time public safety agencies won't be exempt. Reports the Austin Statesman's Mike Ward:

According to Friday's directive, the only exceptions listed in the letter are for school funding, for debt service on bonds, to "maintain benefits and eligibility in Medicaid" programs, the Children's Health Insurance Program and foster care programs , to maintain health and human services eligibility staffing and to keep the state pension and benefits programs properly funded.

That list does not include public safety and prison budgets that earlier got a partial exemption from the 5 percent cuts.

I actually believe it's possible to cut TDCJ's budget substantially - probably by more than 10% in the near term - if the 82nd Legislature enacts policy changes that reduce the prison population and allow closure of several of Texas' more expensive prison units. However, the cuts suggested by TDCJ when the state leadership previously asked for them are unrealistic and highly politicized, cutting things that would harm public safety and generally make no sense. I agree fully with Sen. Whitmire that those cuts should be rejected. But here's how I think the Texas Lege could substantially cut costs at TDCJ:

Instead, TDCJ has suggested slashing diversion funding, cutting health care to levels that would bring down federal litigation, reducing the number of guards without reducing the number of inmates, and has refusedto consider prison closures even though operating the agency's 112 units takes up 80+% of its budget.

IMO that's just a political tactic, telling the Legislature that if they want cuts, TDCJ administrators will try to make sure it's all the recent programming approved in the last two sessions that gets the axe first while prisons remain sacrosanct. That's the position TDCJ successfully took in 2003 and the result raised costs instead of lowered them; it'd be a shame if the Legislature took the same sucker bet again.

THE BLIND LEADING THE BLIND,SH, QUIET, DON'T MENTION "GOD" IN SCHOOL OR LATER IN COURT. "but" WHEN THAT LOST SOUL GETS OUT OF PRISON!THEN THROUGH HIS PROBATION OR PAROLE EFFORTS MAKE SURE THEY GET RIDDLED WITH ALL THAT FAITH BASED GOOD STUFF!How backwards is that!Our whole country was established with school teaching from the Bible.Just can't understand it.! Stupid!backward political regs.

This agency has, since Mr. Scott retired, placed it's correctional officers in a very disrespected state. They have systematically sought to decrease the attitudes of their correctional officers to that of mere prison guards, which, in the officer's opinion reduces his importance. In an effort to meet budget restraints they have sought to decrease staff numbers by implementing a random drug testing policy which does not indicate impairment or any inability to do the job but instead a clear violation of people's constitutional rights. If you test positive for drug use you are fired and have no further means of supporting your family because you are ineligible for unemployment. TDCJ disregards the fact that if the officers are treated in an unprofessional manner by their own employer they will certainly behave in an unprofessional manner, i.e. Bringing in contraband...n

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